Talk about saving the best for last.The 23rd film in the wildly successful James Bond canon arrived three years ago, conveniently on the 50th anniversary of the entire franchise. After the disappointment of Quantum of Solace, there was some apprehension about where the series might go.
Still, after a four year hiatus most fans were just happy to have 007 back -- little did they know they were about see a movie that would dramatically reinvigorate the series and arguably be the greatest Bond film of all time.
I am certainly one of those that feel that way. Skyfall is both the culmination of every great previous Bond movie and as Daniel Craig's 007 puts it in one pivotal scene, a harbinger of a "brave new world." Besides becoming the most successful Bond film financially so far, winning best song at the Oscars, and being a bonafide cultural phenomenon for a period -- the movie also serves as a dynamite spy film.
The plot is one of the most original and daring in the history of 007. It puts an elderly woman (Judi Dench, giving a delicious performance as M) in the center of the action, it pits an effeminate and deformed villain (an Academy Award worthy Javier Bardem) against her as the villain, all while filling out the previously unknown backstory of who James Bond was before he was 007.
Casino Royale and other Bond films may have scratched the surface, but Skyfall digs deeper into the emotional make-up of 007. It pulls this off without being plodding thanks to Daniel Craig's to-date best performance as James Bond. It also helps that the script is incredibly well-paced and written. The film gets a top notch director -- Oscar winner Sam Mendes -- who really puts his own stamp on the movie without messing with the elements we love in a 007 movie. And then there's the score -- which is perfection -- and finally, the cinematography, which is sublime.
Even if you are one of this film's few detractors -- and in this age of hyper-cynical film viewership, it inevitably does -- one must admit that it is hands-down the best looking 007 film of all time.The locales, the ladies, every inch of this movie looks sumptuous, and the action is staged in such a crisp and precise manner (unlike the sloppily-edited set pieces in its predecessor) that you feel like you are in the thick of it every step of the way.
What makes Skyfall so special? It puts an emphasis on story -- and in this one you have a very basic revenge plot that takes on epic proportions because of the people involved. It both pays tribute to the established Bond archetype (as well as his sidekicks M, Q, etc.) but it also conveys a modern anxiety we all have about faceless villainy.
In that sense it shares some DNA with the great Christopher Nolan reboot The Dark Knight, which seemed to both modernize and enshrine Batman as a necessary part of our culture. And although Bond will never be as brooding a hero as the Caped Crusader, after Skyfall it's clear that no one serves up globe-trotting escapism quite like him; like the song says "Nobody does it better."
If the film has a flaw is that it has raised the bar so high, it's almost as if anything that follows will inevitably be a disappointment. This was one of those rare films I not only saw twice in theaters but I found myself giddy at the prospect of a follow-up. With a new M, Moneypenny, and Q firmly established and in place I can't wait to see my favorite 007 -- Daniel Craig -- suit back up for a least a couple more adventures.
Unfortunately, I'll have to wait till November for Bond 24, a.k.a. Spectre, but binge-watching these movies has been a real pleasure and has only rewet my appetite for more.
My rankings:
1) Skyfall
2) From Russia With Love
3) The Spy Who Loved Me
4) Goldfinger
5) Casino Royale
6) For Your Eyes Only
7) Live and Let Die
8) Dr. No
9) On Her Majesty's Secret Service
10) The Living Daylights
11) GoldenEye
12) Octopussy
13) You Only Live Twice
14) Diamonds Are Forever
15) Thunderball
16) Die Another Day
17) Moonraker
18) The World Is Not Enough
19) The Man with the Golden Gun
20) Quantum of Solace
21) Tomorrow Never Dies
22) A View to a Kill
23) License to Kill
Liz's take: Best Bond movie ever -- drop the mike. It looked great. Daniel Craig seems more comfortable in the role than ever before. He's both suave and rough-and-tumble in this movie. Before re-watching it (I only saw it the one time in theaters), I was thinking I might be disappointed by the lack of a strong female character, but even though Berenice Lim Marlohe doesn't have a lot of screen time, her performance is heartbreaking and she does a lot with a little.
Bardem is phenomenal as the bad guy, he gives a flamboyant performance without looking silly. His character's motivations are very personal which helps invest you in his story, as well as M's and Bond's. You get invested in the stakes in a way that you don't if it's countries and governments on the line instead of characters we care about.
This film did so many things so well -- Daniel Craig's performance, the way it's shot, the nods to the Bond legacy, the theme song. The re-introduction of Moneypenny works for me because now she and 007 actually have real tension with each other that doesn't feel artificial. This set the bar so high, I am little nervous about Spectre. I'm excited to see Craig as 007 again and I'm pleased that director Sam Mendes is returning -- but I'll be going in with tempered expectations because I don't know they're going to top this.
Liz's rankings:
1) Skyfall
2) On Her Majesty's Secret Service
3) For Your Eyes Only
4) Casino Royale
5) Goldfinger
6) Dr. No
7) Live and Let Die
8) The Man with the Golden Gun
9) The Spy Who Loved Me
10) The World Is Not Enough
11) GoldenEye
12) The Living Daylights
13) Quantum of Solace
14) Octopussy
15) Moonraker
16) A View to a Kill
17) License to Kill
18) Tomorrow Never Dies
19) Die Another Day
20) You Only Live Twice
21) From Russia With Love
22) Diamonds Are Forever
23) Thunderball
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